PokerStars Apps

High Level Overview

PokerStars sought to launch iOS and Android apps in key markets, and as part of a four man team we released the first mobile poker games on the AppStore.

Strategy

We created a strategy for developing the first poker apps to hit the market, including setting our goals, defining success, ensuring synchronicity with business objectives and post-launch.

End-to-End Development

We managed the entire process from conceptualisation through to launch and monitoring. We worked as a tight-knit, segregated agile squad, and created the apps in under ten months.

Internal Comms

From stakeholder management to operations training, I reported on weekly progress and ensured Web Teams and the Support Department were poised and ready for the launch of the apps.

Review and Maintain

Post-launch I maintained a laser-sharp focus on feedback and bug reports coming in from the operations departments and poker forums and social media, and prioritised this.

Feature Parity

We ensured that all the play related features were fully consistent with desktop.

Multi-Tables

Users were able to play up to four tables on mobile and five tables on tablet.

Full Lobby

All the same games and tables available on desktop were also available in the app.

All Game Formats

Tournaments, ring games, sit & go and ring games were all available to mobile users.

Sign-Up

New players could register and deposit using the mobile app.

Play Now

Only in the app, ‘Play Now’ automatically assigned the player to a suitable table.

Some more information…

The PokerStars apps were quickly becoming a business priority in a world shifting away from desktop and towards mobile.

Background How it was Built My Scope

What did launching the first real money poker apps entail?

A small, four man “SWAT” product team was assembled based out of the London PokerStars offices, with the mandate of bringing to market the first real money mobile apps for iOS and Android.

The goal was to develop a mobile counterpart to the PokerStars desktop client as a mobile app, before launching this in two regulated and segregated markets in Italy and then France, and then rolling this out to the UK, and eventually globally.

Following a soft launch, and a few minor bug fixes, the app rollout was a roaring success and laid the ground work for the state-of-the-art, industry leading mobile product PokerStars boasts today. 

I joined the Mobile Team as a poker specialist, and quickly adapted to the fast paced, agile development process, working directly with the Head of Mobile, our designer, the Project Manager and the dedicated in-house development team based in Ukraine.

We created the product strategy for the apps, ensuring parity with the company’s overall vision, by setting short-term session and engagement goals reflective of what success for the business consisted of. We also created cross-business initiatives outlining where mobile apps would bring value to the customer, and the business, including reaching a more recreational demographic, increasing retention and increasing CRM reach by leveraging mobile hardware and network capabilities. More on how we made it and my responsibilities on the next tabs…

What’s involved in building a first of its kind, pioneering mobile product?

As part of the strategy and planning of the product we established our personas and sought to identify the problems we were solving for each of these, we identified our short term goals (engagement, downloads) mid-term goals (feedback, reviews, bug fix turn-around times) and long-term goals (maintaining a first-in-class product and feature rollout), we also ensured the various business unites were informed in regard to the launch, and kept a close eye on feedback and escalations from the operations teams in regard to the apps.

Development was undertaken by an in-house team based in Ukraine. Mobile app engineering was segregated from other projects, and had its own stream independent from the rest of the business. This allowed us to adopt a streamlined agile approach to the process, and work as a tight-knit group, with the designer and the project manager.

We identified our MVP, and set about writing the requirements (that was mostly my job), attaching the UX, and hosting kick-off and refinement meetings on a very regular basis. I had joined the Mobile Product Team having previously worked as a poker specialist, and was the only team member who didn’t just understand the desktop product inside and out, but also poker itself. This meant I ended up being a part of nearly every development meeting and was in the driving seat as far as shaping the development of the apps in line with the strategy was concerned.

Before too long my focus soon turned to SV testing and UAT. I took the lead in organising company wide voluntary testing groups, offering prizes for the most comprehensive and helpful feedback. The campaign was productive and led to a successful launch with no serious bugs being identified post-launch.

What were my main areas of focus?

Strategic

  • Working with the team in assisting with the strategy for creating a mobile counterpart to the PokerStars client that meet the needs of the customer.
  • Acting as the main point of contact for poker queries for designers and engineers.
  • Managing internal communications and product training so the Operations Teams knew how to address user issues, and were clear on what to escalate, to whom, and how to prioritise escalations.
  • Working with Web Teams in ensuring all relevant web pages relating to the new apps were ready to publish ahead of launch (promotions, how-to guides, FAQs, etc…)


Product

  • Assisting in the creation of the product roadmap and the prioritisation of features.
  • Refining the feature backlog for the PokerStars gaming apps, balancing the requirements of stakeholders and customer expectations.
  • Working with cross-functional teams and stakeholders including: design, compliance, security, payments engineering and testing.
  • Translating product roadmap priorities into well-defined product requirements including, features, user stories, and acceptance test criteria.
  • Managing the AppStore submission process, sourcing all metadata, preparing Apple Communications and ensuring all licensing material was included in all submissions.
  • Closely monitoring post-launch feedback and reviews and processing this information to dynamically refine the roadmap.
  • Managing bug reports and prioritising fixes vs business requirements and user feedback.
  • Closely monitoring player feedback on the AppStore and on popular poker forums.


Testing

  • Personally carried out SV testing as well as UAT and signed-off items at a feature and product level.
  • Sought to run company-wide UAT sessions by designing reporting templates and creating staff-incentives.


Reporting

  • Reporting on feature development progress vs timelines.
  • Reporting on post-launch product reception and feedback.


Academic

  • Seeking to develop a thorough understanding of factors influencing the development for smartphones and tablets.